Katine to get solar power

Coverage of the Katine project in the Guardian and the Observer has led to a collaboration between Amref and SolarAid that, with funding from American rock band Maroon 5, will result in solar power being installed in Katine

When we launched our coverage of Amref's Katine Community Partnerships Project, we were hoping that global web users would see it as a chance to pool ideas and share resources on aid and development issues. Ultimately, we were hoping for readers to propose real and workable solutions to some of the difficulties experienced by aid agencies in Africa.

In the four months since launch, the project has generated a huge amount of interest, with offers of help ranging from schools aiming to raise funds for the project, through to doctors wishing to fly to Katine to offer practical assistance.

One exceptional offer of help came from Nick Sireau, director of the charity SolarAid, an NGO that aims to deliver clean, renewable power to the world's poorest people. Having spotted our coverage of the project in the Guardian and the Observer, Sireau contacted us with news of what his organisation was doing. He asked if there was any way he could work with Amref in Katine to deliver solar power to the region.

"The majority of the rural population in Africa has no access to electricity and is forced to rely on expensive and polluting kerosene for lighting and diesel for generators," Sireau says. "Solar power, however, is more reliable, safer and affordable."

The offer was immediately interesting because there is no constant supply of power in Katine. Moreover, Amref already has experience of installing solar power in Africa (in health centres and schools) so it was potentially easy to integrate into its existing plan.

"The problem was that the budget had already been allocated so we didn't have the resources needed to make the SolarAid proposal work," says Amref UK's Claudia Codsi. "I asked Nick if there was any way he could try to raise the funds needed for solar installation in Katine, with the view that Amref could look at using SolarAid in our other projects in the future."

Sireau went to the Global Cool Foundation, seeking a £10,000-£20,000 pot of funding to carry out the work. Global Cool eventually came up with £10,000 for Katine, with the donation coming from the band Maroon 5, who donated part of the income from their recent tour.

Photograph: SolarAid/Andy Bodycombe

Amref decided the solar energy should be installed at its newly-opened field office in Katine sub-county, which has a community room where the community can come and discuss the project, look at the Katine website and one day contribute their own stories, images and video.

The project team had been relying on generators, but they are noisy, costly to maintain, and require expensive fuel. As the availability and cost of fuel is often based on economic and geo-political factors (for example, the recent turbulence in Kenya), it meant Amref's costs have risen by 40 per cent.

Also, an intermittent power supply has not allowed it to take full advantage of the new satellite internet connection Amref has at its new office; and power surges due to power cuts have damaged electronic equipment and caused the loss of valuable documentation, in turn causing delays to project-related work being communicated externally.

Clearly, solar power at the Katine office would be extraordinarily helpful. The problem was that Amref's budget also wouldn't have stretched to paying for the engineers needed to design the system. Sireau solved that too. He approached Solarcentury, which had helped set-up SolarAid in 2006 with a donation of 5 per cent of its operating profits. Solarcentury agreed to design the system for Katine using engineers who are currently working pro bono. It will contract a local Ugandan company to fit the system.

Sireau says the Katine project will demonstrate how solar energy can be used for sustainable development, something Codsi echoes. "Given the increasing cost of fuel and intermittent power supply, solar power is a cost-effective, environmentally-friendly and sustainable solution," she says. "The donation of solar power is really fantastic and will make an enormous impact on the work we can achieve in Katine.

"What is especially exciting is how, through the media partnership with the Guardian, we have been able to reach out to readers who have helped us to come up with innovative solutions to resolve an existing challenge. Solar power will definitely make a lasting difference to the work of the project officers and the community at large in Katine sub-county."